Man of Metal, Father of Minds
by Machina Super Monstrum
Summary: Set in Frostbreaker's "The Mind's Eye" series, another tale is told. Not all Awakened believe that humans and Pokemon can coexist but that does not mean that destruction is the only answer... A wandering Metagross finds purpose, a Duosion tries to hold him together, and fatherhood, even adoptive, brings both strength and weakness from the greatest of us.


**Chapter 1: Metal and Minds Merge**

 ***A/N: Greeting and salutations my lovelies. For those following my return, good to be back. For those new, welcome to what I hope will be a long, enjoyable stay. I bring you all a story that has been rattling around for many, many months, ever since I read Frostbreaker's 'The Mind's Eye' series, which I would recommend reading first. I got his/her permission to write this and finally feel ready to release it. I do hope you all enjoy. And just for the semi-official statement: I do not own Pokemon and this story will take place in the universe and reference characters created by Frostbreaker.***

There exists a tie between Humans and Pokemon, a hybrid of sorts that is meant to keep the peace between the two races. Both and yet neither, we, the Awakened, created by Arceus for the sake of balance. Granted powerful capabilities by our creator: access to both our Pokemon and Human bloodlines, the ability to speak with either group, modification of our fellows so that they may help in our journey and granted both assistance from and bound with protection of the Sacred ones, we are made to be bridges…

Not all of us agree with our given assignment though, there is a growing group that believes that humanity has grown corrupt, unneeded, harmful to a peaceful world, believing that they should be wiped out.

Their opposition is small but powerful in both strength and influence, striving to bring equality between humans and Pokemon to the world. I have heard of Timothy Maxwell and his protege over in Johto, his work and their capabilities…

I, Zelmod Arathema, cannot agree to either side though I am closer to the former rather than the latter. The blood of the Beldum line runs strong through me, allowing me to maintain a clear head, unclouded by the emotional attachments of both sides. I do not see peaceful coexistence as possible, but destruction is not our only option. Separation, isolation, solidarity for the two groups is what I hold as our most viable option, leaving the Awakened as guardians of this separation.

A wet thwack draws me from my reverie, pulling my mind from its internal void, opening my eyes to a brilliant golden sunset. ' _I_ _know those thought patterns. You were thinking about your 'perfect world' weren't you?!'_

My companion does not agree with my views….

' _My thoughts are bare to you...yes Angi, I was. I still believe it to be the correct course_.'

My companion, Angursa Bicuspis Clavifera, shortened to Angi, is another Awakened, a Pokemon Awakened rather than Human. She is a Duosion, though I am certain she has been holding back evolution for some time.

 _'Come on Zel, we've been over this time and again. It wouldn't work cuz people are stubborn and emotional!_ '

' _That is why we would be assigned as guardians, to keep them under control_.'

I could hear her sigh in my mind. ' _We're just trodding old ground, let's drop it and get something to eat.'_

The thought of food made my stomach growl and my saliva begin to form, it is interesting how dry one's mouth can become when you never speak.

I rose from my comfortable spot overlooking a small lake, staring at the still reflective surface. _'We have watchers on us Angi.'_

' _I know, they're not hiding very well, I believe they are young ones.'_

 _'Let us see if they have the courage to come join us for dinner eh?'_

One simple vegetarian meal cooked and cooling later, Angi and I are seated around a small flickering fire on Route 102 next to that same calm lake. The air is cool but not cold, the sky clear of any clouds to block the brilliant twinkle of the stars in the sky, our foods smell wafting from the long dish it sat in.

 _'They still have not come Angi.'_

 _'Then invite them, but do it with your mouth. We don't want to spook them away.'_

I sighed, _'As you wish.'_ Taking a drink of water, I call out to our watchers. "If you are hungry young ones, you are welcome to join us."

A little squeak and rustling of the nearby tall grass tells us that they heard. Everything goes silent for just a moment until a loud high pitched growling of a stomach makes itself known. "Come out and eat or I will retrieve you myself."

 _'Great, now they're probably going to run away scared.'_

 _'I don't think I scared them that much, straight forward is necessary sometimes.'_

 _'True, but your version is about as soft as a wall.'_

 _'I don't think that's entirel-'_

Our back and forth was cut off by two Ralts leaving the tall grass, both looking malnourished and one of them definitely more protective of the other. "Greetings young ones. You look hungry, please, take as much as you like." As I wave a hand to the tray of cooked vegetables and berries.

They look at me hesitantly, eyes darting to the tray then back to my face. But the loud growling of their stomachs settle the issue then and there. "You have nothing to worry about, I am not a trainer and have none of their pokeballs." I lift my shirt a bit to show them that there is nothing attached to my belt, causing them both to visibly relax as the protective one passes a few morsels to his companion while eating some himself.

I stay seated near them, pulling Angi from atop my head and setting her in my lap, gently stroking her cool, firm body just watching the two eat their fill, the crackling fire the only noise apart from their quite chewing.

"May I ask your names?"

The protective one is the one to look up from their meal as the smaller one kept eating, large red eyes meeting my golden ones, 'Malaki and my sister is Issabella.'

"Charmed. Are you more comfortable with telepathy or speaking? I can use both." A touch of smile hinting at the corner of my mouth, I do enjoy the shock when I say things like that.

His eyes widen as his mouth opens, "R-really?"

 _'Really. A perk of being half Metagross.'_

His sister perks up at the sound of Malaki's voice. "C-can we have more?"

A quick glance down at the tray shows its picked clean. "Certainly, though I do not have any more cooked food, I do have plentiful fresh berries. What are your preferences?"

"Sitrus"

"Pecha"

"I have both of those." Reaching over with one hand, I grab my woven bag and open it to pull out several of both types, levitating them to the pair. "Enjoy."

Issabella digs into hers with the fervor of a child given free candy, while Malaki hesitates,"Mister, why are you being so nice to us? What's your angle?"

 _'I like this one_ _Angi,_ _he's relatively quick.'_

 _'That's nice Zel, don't stop petting me…'_ Her mind clearly elsewhere.

"I am not Mister, my name is Zelmod and this is Angi, I am helping you because you two are Pokemon in need and it is my duty to help you if it is within my power. I have no angle, I do not want anything from you two other than full stomachs and to return you safely to your parents."

I could actually hear the mental facepalm as Angi sighed. _'Wrong move Zel.'_

Issabella stops, looking at the half eaten berry, on the edge of tears while Malaki is trying to put on his brave face but the pain and sorrow in their thoughts practically radiates from them.

"Mom's gone, captured by a human. Don't know who dad was."

I can feel the seething anger lapping at the edge of my thoughts. I bear no love for humans but things such as this are one of the few that truly enrage me. "How long have you two been alone?"

"About two months. Turns out other Pokemon aren't so nice when parents aren't around."

"I see." I take a long calming breath, closing my eyes for a brief moment _'Aye or nay Angi?'_

 _'You have to ask?! Of course! We can't just leave those two to struggle alone out here!'_

I reopen my eyes to see two bright red pairs staring back at me, one expectantly, the other nervously. I put on a small smile, "I would like you two to accompany me then. I do not wish to see you suffer and always enjoy more company. The choice is entirely yours however and I guarantee that I do everything in my power to protect you"

Malaki looks pensive for a moment before Issabella bursts out, "YES! Thank you so much!" as she vaults crying into my chest, squeezing tight. Her brother just nods.

"Thank you Mister Zelmod. I hope we won't be a burden."

Issabella looks up teary eyed as she nuzzles into my rapidly dampening shirt, "I-if we go with you, you'll be kinda like our father…D-does that mean I can call you Daddy?"

 _'She's quick to latch Angi.'_

 _'Humor her Zel, it'll make her more at ease and who knows, maybe you playing dad will be enjoyable...'_

For some reason, my smile widens a little more genuinely at that, "If it makes you more comfortable, I don't see why not."

She squeezes tighter, "Thank you Daddy!" I gently pat her head, feeling her thick hair, coarse from not being washed in some time.

A small silence lapses over the camp, the snaps and pops of the fire echoing in the quite night. Malaki is the first to speak, breaking the serenity,"Zelmod, you said you were part Metagross, but you look like a human..." His voice trails off, leaving the question hanging thickly in the air, his sister's gaze rising from my chest to stare eagerly at me.

"I am what is termed an Awakened, crafted purposefully by Arceus to function as a go between for the two races. I look human, but the bloodline of the Beldum runs strongly through me. I gain the powers and strengths of that line as well as the weaknesses, the ability to speak to both Pokemon and human with ease, and it alters my own body in ways I am still discovering." Reaching up to run a hand through my silvery and blue streaked hair, I continue. "My birth hair was a light red, now it is the silver and blue you see. My eyes were a similar case, being blue, now the golden they are. My skin is far stronger than a normal humans, I am not invincible but it takes far more effort to damage it, though it comes at the cost of deadened physical feeling. I can certainly think and process faster than normal, though nowhere near as quickly as a full blooded Metagross. I am meant to be a liaison, and that is what I was designed to be."

Both stare wide eyed at me, intrigued by my explanation, though neither say a word.

"Angi is also an Awakened, though her aspects show more of her pokemon side. She would appear as a mostly normal Duosion, though her more humanoid shape might be considered odd. Until to she were to either speak as a human would or enter into a fight, most would have a hard time telling her apart from the rest of her species. Her human half makes her more resistant to that which would normally harm a Psychic type, not immune but certainly less painful. The two of us have been traveling together for some time doing what we can to maintain the balance, despite our differing opinions on how exactly it could be achieved."

The aforementioned Awakened speaks up as I peter out, "Right now, helping you two seems like the best course of action for doing just that," The cell Pokemon pulls herself from the under the small Ralts, floating in the air over the slowly dieing fire, her bubbly voice sounding odd to me from so long without hearing it. "I have an idea, if Zel here is game for it, we could make it a point of finding your mother. If you said she was captured by a human, then that probably means that human was a trainer. Our odds are low of finding that trainer anywhere nearby if its already been two months, but we might get lucky. I think there are some ways to look them up or something. We could probably increase our odds, but, and this is a big but, Zelmod, you'd have to take on the Trainer Challenge and become a Pokemon Trainer."

The very thought sends shivers of disgust down my spine. The Trainer Challenge was nothing more than state sponsored slavery to me. But, as I look at the two weary but hopeful faces before me, I feel like I can swallow my disdain, if only for a little while.

"I know that's a lot to ask for you Zel but I think its worth a shot."

I take another shuddering inhale, feeling my body untense. "….Alright, but only for long enough to find your mother and let me reiterate that the two of you will never be *mine*, you two are always your own people, free to leave anytime you wish. I will never make you fight unless you choose to, I don't care what rules the humans may have, that is something that will never waver with me understand?"

Issabella nods enthusiastically into my chest while Malaki gives a single nod of his head. "Of course Daddy."

I run a hand down my face, suddenly feeling much more tired than I had before. "Angi, do you know where we would need to go to begin?"

"Yeah, its the town down that way, shouldn't take more than a few hours to get there. We have to talk to someone in particular to register or some such."

"In the morning then. For now, you all should rest, I will maintain watch for a while."

Unfolding the single long sleeping bag, Angi, Malaki, and Issabella climb into it, snuggling together for warmth in the chill of the autumn night. "Good night you two."

"Good night Ms. Angi!"

"Good night Ma'am."

All three of them call out to me as I sat down to lean against a tree across the fire from them, keeping a watchful eye, "Night Zel" "Good night Zelmod" "Night night Daddy!"

Silence reigns until their soft snoring signals they've drifted off to the land of dreams.

 **'** _ **The Trainer Challenge eh? I swore to never…no, to help another, there is little that is too great. I will find their mother.'**_ I sigh deeply, dragging my eyes from the sparkling abyss of the sky across the dwindling fire to the sleeping forms of my new companions. **'** _ **They are cute kids, lot of potential, it'll be pleasant to have some more company if only for a little while.**_ _ **Maybe I can prepare them for the world before we find their mother, bring out their potential before they leave...**_ _ **Though, it did feel...right to be called Daddy.'**_

That final, unusually comforting thought, is the last that swirls in my mind as relax and let myself be taken by sleep.

 ***A/N: A somewhat short but strong beginning I hope. If anyone feels strongly about it and would like to Beta it, I won't say no to getting some help cleaning it up and tweaking. Though I did constantly get the feeling I was doing more telling and less showing but couldn't figure out how to remedy it. I highly recommend popping over and reading Frostbreaker's work if you haven't already. This will likely only get more confusing if you haven't. And if any of you are the type of person who got Angi's full name's meaning without googling it, then you're the kinda person I wanna hang out with without a doubt. May the night see you safe and the dawn greet you kindly readers.** *


End file.
